Quakertown Lets Its Solicitor Go

The resignation of Quakertown solicitor Jeffrey Bahls was accepted by Borough Council last night, two weeks after he filed suit against the zoning hearing board.

Bahls had been solicitor for the last five years.

While little public comment was made by council members on the resignation, President Ronald Heller said council had "lost confidence" in its solicitor.

"Everyone thought it was in the best interest," Heller said.

Not everyone had lost confidence in Bahls, though. Councilman Philip Richter, after casting the only no vote, said, "I feel he is a good man. I hate to see the borough lose him."

Bahls charges in his suit against the hearing board that it had "abused its discretion and committed errors of law" by requiring him to revert office space in his professional law building along West End Boulevard back into a garage.

No council members would say publicly whether the suit affected their decision in accepting the resignation.

But one council member said the suit had a bearing on the final decision.

Heller said council would look for another solicitor.

In other action, council approved nearly $220,000 in expenditures for the purchase of two trucks.

It authorized $136,650 for purchase of a "reveal and seal" truck for visual inspection and grouting repair of sewer lines from Cues Inc., Orlando, Fla.

The van-type truck is capable of simultaneously running a color television camera and grouter along a cable strung through the sewer. From the modular control panels in the van, the camera can be operated to sight leaks into the system while the grouter can be controlled to plug the hole.

The leaks and repair operations can be monitored from inside the van.

The system is also capable of identifying infiltration in lateral connections from homes to the main sewer line.

The remaining $83,911 allocation is for the purchase of a trash truck from GranTurk Equipment Co., King of Prussia.